Nagarkatti named USC research VP

Prakash Nagarkatti, an internationally known researcher who has directed a highly successful research enterprise at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, has been named to become USC’s vice president for research. Nagarkatti, whose appointment was approved Friday (Oct. 7) by the Board of Trustees, will be responsible for planning and implementing the university’s research priorities.

Nagarkatti has served as associate dean of the USC School of Medicine since 2005, overseeing all research-related activities. From FY04 through FY11, external funding at the USC School of Medicine increased from $21 million to $41 million.

“Dr. Nagarkatti is a skilled researcher with a proven track record in attracting funds and navigating the landscape of federal agencies and opportunities,” USC President Harris Pastides said. “With the university on an upward trajectory with our research funding, we needed to choose a leader who will continue to guide those efforts and help us grow in our Carnegie ‘very high research activity’ mission.”

In addition to leading a vigorous research effort, Nagarkatti has earned international recognition for his own research. He oversees a $6 million Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM), one of only 11 such centers in the nation supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

His research, which has concentrated on cancer and autoimmune diseases, also has been funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as private foundations such as the American Cancer Society, and he has published more than 160 papers in prestigious journals.

Nagarkatti said he is eager to create an environment in which research and scholarly activity can flourish.

“We must build an environment that promotes innovation and collaboration across all USC schools and colleges as well as with other universities and other state, regional and national public and private partners,” Nagarkatti said. “Only by encouraging interdisciplinary research will we be able to solve problems unique to our state and region and develop the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs.”

A Carolina Distinguished Professor, Nagarkatti joined USC from Virginia Commonwealth University. He earned his doctorate from Jiwaji University in India. He has earned numerous teaching awards and mentored countless undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty.

Nagarkatti’s appointment is scheduled to become effective Oct. 16. He will be joined in the Office of Research by Dr. Tom Vogt, who has been named associate vice president for research for the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) areas.

Vogt, who has directed the USC Nanocenter since 2005, is a USC Educational Foundation Distinguished Professor and professor of chemistry and biochemistry. A fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Physical Society, Vogt is succeeding Dr. Tim Mousseau, who is returning to the faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences.

The University of South Carolina holds the designation by the Carnegie Foundation as an institution of “very high research activity” and attracted $227 million in research and sponsored program funding in 2011, a 3.7 percent increase over last year. As the state’s flagship university, USC is dedicated to advancing teaching, research and service that support South Carolina’s greatest needs.